TOP TEN New and Updated Available Internships
Center for Agroecology & Sustainable Food Systems (CASFS)
Contact: Damian Parr, dmparr@ucsc.edu
CASFS is offering a lower division production internship focused on field-scale harvesting and orchard care, as well as general market garden-scale cover cropping, bed tillage, composting, and propagation. The internship will include a cohort of approximately 15 interns, working as a team. There is a possibility that interested students might be invited to continue interning in future quarters. We are most interested in students who can commit to two quarters of interning with us, during your time at UCSC, though the quarters interned do not need to be back-to-back. Each year, a number of paid student staff positions are available to graduates of our internship program.
Spring Quarter Restoration Internship in Santa Cruz, --Stipend $--Sustainable Mother Earth Project
Contact: Mark (he, him) and Kristin (she, her) Sullivan
(831) 295-0005, kjsullivan@protonmail.com
Please call if you have questions, or just email your resume that incudes classes taken.
Introducing ourselves: We have been immersed in sustainability, environmental/social justice for 35+ years, as educators and through community and NGO work, climate/biodiversity
preservation, activism, and life choices. We are inspired by all things good on beautiful Planet Earth. We especially love people who do incredible and inspiring things to make this world a better place and stand up for justice, truth, liberty, happiness, and beauty for all.
We lived in our sustainable, solar, strawbale home for 20 years; worked actively with thousands of students; have an NGO/projects in Rwanda, Nicaragua, with the Lakota people, and in Watsonville with farmworkers. We would love to partner with you, as well as to continue our life’s work and further our mission to share the land and “be the change we wish to see in the world.”
Interns would partner and collaborate with us on our sustainable Mother Earth project to assist in stewardship and restoration of our land by assisting in planting native plants, including indigenous sacred beauties of cultural significance. Project work and physical, hands-on activities may include the following: planting, maintenance, ground preparation, garden work, and invasive plant control.
- Student interns would work in teams and learn about how private landowners can and ought to be part of the solution to increase biodiversity on their lands.
- Stipend paid in spring quarter with possible summer work
- We are hoping that this internship will be fun, inspiring, and that it will help to spur similar actions in others. We would love to have you be a part of our collective vision to create a more healthy Earth for all people, our plant brethren, the winged, the finned, and the four-legged. We are open to any guidance, thoughts or suggestions from interns.
- ENVS Restoration 160 a plus!
- Bipoc peoples strongly urged to apply.
Education for Sustainable Living Program
Education for Sustainable Living Program
Life Lab
School Garden Internships
Contact: Cara-Alexandra Sundell, cara@lifelab.org
Winter Internships with Life Lab at the Blooming Classroom Garden and Amesti School!
Come enjoy the Winter season in the garden and get school credit.
Interns receive training in: Garden-based science education, working with children in an outdoor setting, organic gardening, garden development projects, environmental education, games, activities, and much more!
Interns teach and work on garden projects all quarter.
2 credits available through the Environmental Studies Dept.
Training begins the first week of classes.
Campus Natural Reserve (FERP)
Various Internships
Contact: Alex Jones, asjones@ucsc.edu (831)459-4971
The UCSC Campus Natural Reserve provides numerous opportunities for internships and student projects involving plants, animals, forest ecology, restoration and stewardship. These offerrings include: FERP, Stewardship assistant, Phenology Litter Traps, Tomography, Herpatology, or even an opportunity to create your own internship.
Forest Ecology Research Plot (FERP) woody plant recensus--40 interns needed
- Make sure you're prepared with gear, etc.: We will provide you with tools, gloves, and other equipment needed for your specific project, but you'll be responsible for keeping yourselves comfortable and nourished. This means dressing in layers, having rain gear if it's going to rain, having sturdy shoes or rain boots if it will rain, a hat if it's sunny, etc. We have a few sets of rain gear, but not enough for everyone. You can get a cheap pair of rain pants and rain jacket online--doesn't have to be fancy, can be ~$20. Also make sure to bring enough water and food, including snacks and lunch if your shift straddles that time period. A good attitude, willingness to work hard and have fun, and lots of curiosity and enthusiasm are really helpful as well. If you have a beater pair of shoes or boots, best to wear those, as they will definitely be exposed to poison oak oils.
- If you know you are highly sensitive to poison-oak oils, the FERP is not for you ---we wear gloves and full-body coveralls, but your footwear, and your skin if you're not careful, will be exposed to poison-oak oils. It is a woody plant, so it's actually part of our study and we do actually measure it!
- We will be out in the woods for a full 6 hours! In addition to the above information about staying warm, fed and hydrated, you may want to bring other supplies to keep yourself comfortable out there. We have some extra toilet paper and sanitary products, but you should plan ahead and be prepared to spend 6 hours away from campus.
Homeless Garden Project Internship
Also Under Environmental Justice
Contact: Atalanta Kyriazi, atalantak@
The Homeless Garden Project provides job training on a 2.5 acre organic farm and its enterprises, to homeless individuals in the Santa Cruz area. We run a 60 member CSA (May through October) and have a retail store near downtown. Interns are encouraged to set their own goals and create a project that will leave a lasting impression on the organization, with unlimited access to the knowledge of the farm workers and agency staff as well as other agencies we work closely with. Tasks can include, but are not limited to: everyday farm maintenance activities – bed clearing, planting out, greenhouse propagation, irrigation, etc.; planning and teaching a workshop to crew and public participants; fundraising/grant writing; administrative assistance; cooking.
For more information, please visit the Homeless Garden Project website.
UCSC Fort Ord Natural Reserve in Marina, CA
Check out Flyer here to apply!
Various Internships
Contact: Joe Miller, joemiller@ucsc.edu.
Ten Week internships start with the UCSC Winter Quarter on 01/03/2022. For Winter 2022, we are looking for volunteers to help with:
Reserve Stewardship and Research Support - This year we are trying an internship that introduces students to a wide variety of habitats, species, and research methods. This position may include invasive plant removal, reserve cleanups, light construction, wildlife camera maintenance and data processing, small mammal monitoring, herpetology monitoring, plant measurements, and general reserve stewardship. This is a good "job shadowing" of reserve staff, and a great way to get to know the reserve and generate connections and ideas if you are considering an independent research project or senior exit internship later in your university career.
Ecological Plant Restoration - Large scale planting and restoration work on UCSC FONR in Marina, CA. We are working to enhance the habitat at UCSC FONR, by planting thousands of seedlings of endangered sand gilia (Gilia tenuiflora ssp. arenaria). This is a great way to learn the process of site preparation, planting, and seed collection of an endangered plant.
Vegetation Surveys - Includes on the ground individual plant measurements and remote sensing via drone in long term plots around the reserve. This work will include using arcGIS so experience is a plus!
Ten Week internships start with the UCSC Winter Quarter on 01/03/2022. Due to the nature of the work and commuting logistics, we generally need an intern to have a whole day available. Shifts are 6 hours long, not including commute time. A reserve carpool vehicle is available for commuting from UCSC Coastal Biology Campus to UCSC FONR.
We also welcome applicants from CSUMB and community colleges, let us know your schedule and we will go from there!
Interested undergraduates may complete the following form to apply. Please be descriptive in your responses! Availability and previous experience determine selection. The internships require transportation to UCSC Fort Ord Natural Reserve in Marina, Ca. which is about 45 minutes - 1 hour drive from UCSC Campus. All UCSC Fort Ord Natural Reserve internships require teamwork and communication. There is potential for exposure to poison oak, snakes, weather, and insects.
California Native Plant Society
Vegetation Program
Contact: Julie Evens, jevens@cnps.org
The California Native Plant Society (CNPS) is a statewide non-profit conservation organization (www.cnps.org) founded in 1965, with more than 10,000 members in 35 chapters across California and Baja California Mexico. The mission of CNPS is to increase understanding and appreciation of California’s native plants and to conserve them and their natural habitats through scientific study, education, advocacy, horticulture, and land stewardship. The CNPS Vegetation Program supports a uniform system for vegetation sampling, classification, and mapping and maintains vegetation information databases. This system, developed over the past 25 years by CNPS and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), is used by both governmental and non-governmental institutions to map, categorize and describe vegetation.
Vegetation mapping and ground-based sampling are useful tools for resource assessment, land management, regional planning, and long-term resource monitoring. Since Santa Cruz County experienced an unprecedented wildfire season in 2020 as well as other fires in recent years (CalFire 2020), CNPS and partners will set up an array of monitoring plots in redwood forests that span a two-dimensional gradient of burn intensity (from high intensity to unburned) and hydrology (from drier to wetter). By having numerous monitoring plots, land managers can better evaluate ecosystem biodiversity in redwood forests across a broad swath of Santa Cruz County and evaluate invasive plant threats, particularly in areas with recent fire or near development. This research can also provide further insight on fire risk, invasive plants, Sudden Oak Death Syndrome (SODS), and other impacts. Assessing ecosystem biodiversity and threats will directly assist land managers to prioritize restoration efforts across this region where habitat fragmentation, climate change, and other disturbances continue to occur. Additionally, other post-fire plots will be established in other forest, shrubland and herbaceous vegetation types to survey the characteristics of burned vegetation and fire-followers at State Parks such as Big Basin Redwoods SP and Henry Coe SP.
Interns will participate in field botany and vegetation surveys in natural areas of Santa Cruz County, where participants will learn and practice survey methods used by the California Native Plant Society (CNPS) and California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW). We have several ongoing projects that these efforts will support, including fine-scale vegetation mapping of Santa Cruz Co. All participants will keep a journal of notes and observations. Photography and using GPS and smart mapping tools will be a part of the work (e.g. Ipads with ESRI Collector, etc.). Participants will be required to help identify plant species, create short narrative descriptions of study areas, and collect detailed measurements of vegetation (e.g., diameter at breast height, percent cover by species, burn severity, etc.).
All-day field trips to local wild areas will focus on plant communities and techniques involved in vegetation monitoring, mapping, and classification. Time frames will depend on the level of interest and availability for exploratory field trips and vegetation surveys.
Availability for at least one (1) full day each week would be ideal, particularly for field work – for full days, we are hoping those could be mostly in May and early June (if the spring quarter). Please fill out the online application indicating your availability.
Tuesday all day (preferred), Tuesday morning, Tuesday afternoon
Calabasas Internship- affiliated with C9/10
Calabasas Internship
Listing also found in the Environmental Education tab.
Contact: Flora Lu, floralu@ucsc.edu
This internship affiliated with College 9/10 seeks UCSC students who want the opportunity to work with youth, facilitate agroecological knowledge acquisition, promote locally grown, healthy food, and raise awareness of social and environmental justice issues. Interns will travel to Calabasas Elementary once or twice a week (transportation provided or gas money reimbursed) to undertake the after-school program, helping to design and implement environmental, garden-based curricula with children ranging from first graders to sixth graders. Interns will also assist with the upkeep of the Discovery Garden: weeding, planting, watering, pruning, etc.
Bird School Project
Education Internship
Contact: Jessica Correa email: jess@birdschoolproject.org
Did you ever have an awesome outdoor experience that got you hooked on nature? Are you an excited naturalist willing to share your expertise with the next generation? Have you ever thought of getting into science education? The Bird School Project is an exciting outdoor education program focused on birdwatching in schoolyards throughout Santa Cruz County. We help students investigate the wild birds that live right outside their classroom door using binoculars and field guides. Birds are everywhere and we believe that you don't have to travel far to develop a formative connection with nature! Interning with the Bird School Project is a great opportunity to get to experience teaching environmental education. Currently, we are seeking passionate educators who can help facilitate eye-openingexperiences for middle school studnets during the following times: Monday-Friday Time: Anytime between 8am-4pm.
